Working for the man
by Thenumber1riddlerfan
Summary: When you destroy Professor Oak's lab, it turns out you have to pay for it somehow. Companion story to Maturity. T because of future content. Oldrivalshipping, Specialshipping, Mangaquestshipping, Soulsilvershipping, and Franticshipping. Possible other ships too.
1. Chapter 1

This is sort of a continuation from my one-shot story; Maturity. You should probably read that one first; it's the prologue in a way. This will contain specialshipping, oldrivalshipping, mangaquestshipping, soulsilvershipping, and franticshipping. As usual, tell me mistakes and I'll fix them. Don't own it.

* * *

Professor Oak had never been more afraid. Not when he'd been kidnapped, not when the world was about to be destroyed. But the prospect of telling half of his pokedex holders that they were A, really not needed for the Kalos stone project and B, that he needed someone to pay off the damages to the lab had him sweating bullets. Combine A with B and you'll be getting close to the professor's source of discomfort.

When he first entered the room where the ten dexholders had gathered, he was pleasantly surprised to find that nothing expensive or irreplaceable had been broken yet. Of course, that didn't mean it wouldn't happen. By the way Ruby and Sapphire were going at it, something was going to get thrown soon.

The professor cleared his throat as he turned to address the children. 'It's going to be fine.' he thought to himself. 'They'll love to help you out. They'll…oh God, I hope I don't get lynched.'

"Ruby, Sapphire, could you please quiet down?" Professor Oak decided to start out by preventing Ruby from suffocating as Sapp's hands tightened around his throat.

"Yo Prof, what are we here for?" Gold asked as he continued to play what appeared to be poker with Emerald in the back.

"Well as you know, the Kalos stone project is my top concern at the moment, and I will be needing some of you to do some fieldwork. Unfortunately, some of you won't be helping." There was general confusion as this comment sunk in, though Blue sent a knowing smirk. Professor Oak took a deep breath before continuing. "Because of the…episode yesterday, most of the equipment in the scan lab has been broken. So, some of you are going to help me test the so called Mega Stones, and some…will help pay off the damages." The reaction to this last comment was mixed. Narrowed eyes, (Green and Silver) startled expressions (Mainly Yellow and Ruby), and loud whooping, though Professor Oak assumed that was because Gold had apparently gotten a straight flush. (He wasn't listening to a word said. Again.)

"I would never expect you to pay out of pocket, so I found some employers looking for help in Viridian City. Half of you will be working there for a couple of weeks." Here it was. There were a couple of splutters of protest and more shocked faces. It's not like he had a choice. The destruction yesterday was expensive, and scientific research was more of a long-term investment.

"Anyway," Professor Oak continued, sweat starting to bead on his brow. "That's that. Five of you will work with me, while the other five work jobs. Red, I'll need your battling expertise on this, so you're working with me. Crystal, you'll be a valuable asset, as usual." The professor closed his eyes. Here began the parts he was dreading. "Ruby, Sapphire,…well, I can't really keep the two of you together after yesterday, and since Mega evolutions supposedly happen in battle, and you're so against battling Ruby, I well…" Ruby was looking at him with a horrified fascination. Sapphire looked relieved.

"Professor," Ruby angrily replied. "She was the one who did most of the damage!"

"Yes, but I need…her."

"Uh, Gold and Silver," Gold head jerked up from his cards. Silver's eyes narrowed. "You two were responsible for a lot of the destruction, and I…really…can't have either of you…around for…this." Professor Oak finished lamely. Emerald was taking his revenge on Gold's appropriation of his money by laughing at his expression. Silver's eyes were now slits.

"Yellow, I really don't see how you could help in this regard, so…" Yellow nodded and looked down. At least someone was taking this well.

"And that brings us to…Green." Professor Oak's voice was so weak at the end; you practically couldn't hear it. Green looked vaguely surprised and annoyed, and opened his mouth to reply. "For reasons I'd rather not state, I can't have you participating in the experiment either." Professor Oak hurried on quickly. His grandson's eyes narrowed.

"Grandfather, Silver and I are are beyond capable battlers." Gold looked annoyed at being left out. "Wouldn't it be more efficient to…"

"I really can't have either of you near here, though for totally different reasons." Blue hid a smirk behind her hand. Professor Oak thought back to the encounter with the brunette in his office, and how she politely suggested that of the two of them, Green be the one to work, lest some love letters the professor had written in his foolish youth finally be delivered. Though the loss of his bright grandson and the gaining of a giggling trickster was crippling, it was better not to tempt fate.

"Well, I already have a job." Green pronounced angrily. "The gym should make more than enou…"

"Unfortunately because of your reputation Green, the gym doesn't get enough challengers to make the necessary amount. Luckily, someone has offered to look after the gym while your working." Professor Oak neglected to mention that that "volunteer" was also the reason Green was going to be working in the first place. Blue's smile grew bigger, if possible.

"Well, if that's everything, I guess I better be going. Crystal, you can find a list of job in my office. Give everyone one they like. Okay, I have to check on my aides, goodbye." And with that, the professor hurried from the room, eager to escape the glares of some of his young assistants.

As Professor Oak fled, Blue took Crystal aside. "Hey Crystal," Blue said with a wink. "Why don't you let me divvy up the jobs?"

"Blue, the professor told me to do it. You would probably give everyone a job they hated."

"Fine, you give them out. And I can let everybody know what the October fourteenth entry in your diary says." Crystal turned beet red and reluctantly gave in. Blue grinned once again to herself. This was going to be fun.

* * *

This is to set things up. If you review, tell me which jobs you think Green and the others should have.


	2. Chapter 2

Don't own it. Tell me mistakes and I'll fix them.

* * *

Professor Oak peered through the magnifying glass at the smooth round stone. Flawless. Not just the stone, but the atmosphere as well. It was so peaceful. Crystal and the others were in some other room, looking over the newly arrived specimens. Well, except for Blue. She had weaseled out of work by stating that she had to go take care of Green-sweetie's gym. It wasn't that much of a loss, but the fact that he didn't have his hard-working and down to earth grandson to help out still rankled the professor. Still, it was better than the alternative. Speaking of Green, he and the others must have arrived at their respective job sites. Professor Oak found himself hoping that everything would be okay. He had told Crystal to give them all a job they liked and would do well. The last thing he needed right now was to have to pay off another fire damage insurance price. (A long story. Don't ask.) But then again, he had put Crystal; one of the most mature people he knew, in charge of work division. She wouldn't let anything happen, surely! Professor Oak returned his attention to the colorful sphere, his mind once again at ease.

* * *

"What?!" Crystal grimaced as Red's cry sounded. She was having trouble identifying one particular mega stone, a pale blue with black streaks. Emerald had gone off to do the identifying process "somewhere else". She had sent Sapphire after him half an hour ago, and she hadn't come back either.

"Yes, I let Blue divide up the jobs. Look, it's not like I had a choice." She recalled the brunette's evil smile and her feeling of absolute terror.

"But why?" Red asked. He didn't seem to be progressing much with the pile of mega stones he had yet to identify. Crystal gave him a look. "Oh, right. It's Blue." Red fell silent for a few moments, and Crystal managed to finally place the Charizardite X in the identified pile. "But nobody will do jobs Blue suggested. It would be hell on Earth."

"Blue just told me the jobs she wanted everyone to do," Crystal confessed, avoiding Red's gaze by examining a pink mega stone. "I gave out the addresses of their locations." She recalled the she-devil's snickering as she circled jobs on the list.

"You're telling me that they don't know what they'll be doing?"

"Yeah." Red was silent for a moment.

"What's Yellow doing?"

"Nothing dangerous."

"Is it as bad as I think it is? Do I even want to know about it?" Red asked, apprehension in his voice.

"Yes, it is, and no, you don't."

"Should we tell Professor Oak?" At that, Crystal looked up to see the professor hurry by in the hall, a blissful look on his face.

"If I'm right, he'll find out soon enough."

* * *

Ruby stared through the crowd, looking in vain for a "Large man in purple, with a beard." He was waiting in Viridian station, the paper with it's address in Crystal's handwriting crumpled in his hand. Whoever it was should hurry up. If Ruby had to witness one more fashion disaster like the woman who just walked by, he might go crazy. He had been shocked to see: overcoat, bright red hair, a bandanna around the mouth, and an orange fedora. Really? It had been almost as bad as wild-girl's tastes. In fact, the whole station clashed, the upholstery on the chairs didn't go with the floor tiles at all.

As he contemplated this, a hand on his shoulder made him turn around. Ruby gaped up at the huge man looming over him. The stranger grinned down at him, his smile showing through his abnormally shaped, snow white beard. But it was not the beard that made Ruby almost have a second heart attack in as many minutes. The man wore a vivid purple T-shirt with faded words over his potbelly, and black cargo pants. A baby blue coat with, God help him, ORANGE shoulders, cuffs, and pockets hung over his shoulders, and a silver locket hung around his neck.

"Hey, are you Oak's kid?" The man said still staring down.

"…What?" Ruby said after a moment, still struggling to comprehend the man's state of dress.

"Are you the kid Oak sent out here?" The man asked again.

"Uh, yes sir. I'm Ruby."

"Outstanding! How's it going kid? I'm Wulfric." The man's bear-paw like hand reached down and crushed Ruby's in its grip as Wulfric shook vigorously.

"Well, best get moving! " And with that, Wulfric turned abruptly around and strode toward the exit. Ruby stared for a moment before jolting and hurrying after him.

"Excuse me, but, where are we going?" Ruby asked, as he tried to keep up with the big man.

The man laughed. "Beats me. They're always moving it around. I hear that they put it somewhere in the forest this year." Ruby paused to absorb that piece of information.

"…Put what in the forest?"

"Oh, I almost forgot!" Wulfric said, coming to an abrupt halt that caused Ruby to crash into him. "I've forgot to give you your shirt. Here you go." Wulfric pulled from his coat pocket the grimiest and ugliest purple shirt Ruby had ever seen. Before he could mouth a word of protest, however, Wulfric had shoved the shirt down onto Ruby, in all its repulsive glory. Ruby glanced down, and found the type on his shirt was also to faded to read.

"Gahh! Sir, I can't wear this!" Ruby wondered if the dirt stains would ever come out of his jacket. He could feel the grime from the rag rubbing off onto the clothes he had underneath.

"You know what, you're right! It is a bit big." Mused Wulfric; observing the sleeves that stretched long beyond Ruby's arms. "I'll get you a new one when we get there. But we better hurry or we'll be late for the bus." And with that, Wulfric dragged a still protesting Ruby over to the bus platform.

A bus ride sitting right next to a sweaty big guy was not on Ruby's list of favorite ways to travel. Wulfric kept grumbling about the heat, saying it was colder where he came from. Ruby's eyes scanned the other passengers. Surprisingly, a majority of them were young children wearing purple T-shirts. Most of them were hopping up and down excitedly, both amusing and annoying the adults on the bus. Though Ruby tried to make out the lettering on the T-shirts, they were moving too much. In the back, Ruby could see bad fashion lady. He looked again incredulously. The lady, at least it looked like a lady, was still wearing an overcoat in the middle of June! Whoever they were, they still had that blue bandanna tied over their mouth too. Wait…a blue bandanna?

Before Ruby could pursue that disturbing line of thought, some of the children let out shouts. As far as Ruby could tell, the bus was in the middle of nowhere, but everybody was climbing off. Following Wulfric, Ruby stepped down onto the ground where he had his third horrible surprise of the day, and this one was by far the worst. In the current clearing, tents were pitched everywhere there was room, situated around fire pits. Adults in purple T-shirts went through the kids, reading off names from clipboards. Ruby realized with horror he could finally read the lettering on the horrid purple things: CAMP CATERPIE, in all caps. "Now where is the counselor sign up?" Wulfric wondered from beside him.

* * *

Gold looked up at the building and then back at the paper in his hand. Yes, he was in the right place. The building was nestled in the Viridian city suburbs, very out of the way. The place was plain and gray; almost nothing about the inside could be gleaned from looking at it. Never one for hesitating, Gold strode through the front door.

The inside had polished floors and white walls. Nearby, a man in a white coat sat behind a counter, reading. The man looked up.

"Hello are you Professor Oak's understudy?"

"Uh, …yeah! Sure."

"Excellent!" The man hurried out from behind the counter, a large smile in place. "It's such an honor to meet you! I'm told all of the professor's Poke-dex holders are brilliant! True masters in their fields!"

"Well, not ALL of us." Gold replied, thinking of a certain red-haired individual. "But I certainly am! In fact, I'm the best of all of them. Well, maybe Red's a better battler, but I'm definitely the greatest after him!" The man did not seem put out by Gold's bragging; in fact he looked delighted.

"Splendid! Now, if you'll just follow me." Gold trailed after the man down a side hall stemming from the rear of the room. "I guess I had better explain your duties, but a bit of background information would probably be helpful too. As you most likely know, our original facility was destroyed on Cinnabar Island, so we had to relocate…"

Gold felt his mind drifting. The only decorations on the walls were diagrams spouting science gibberish. Too bad there weren't any pretty girls here. Although he had to admit, not many girls could look good in a lab-coat. Kris pulled it off, though. Boy did she ever.

"…long time to build. We even got a special consultant to visit from Sinnoh! But anyway, the fossil reanimation process is often more…"

Gold was starting to wonder when lunch was. He had come straight here from prof's, and it was almost noon. He really needed some fuel. Exbo and the others would probably want something too. Then maybe he could see if Viridian had a game corner.

"…radiation speeds the carbon dating. Ah, this is where you'll be working primarily." The man stopped at a room filled with machines. A caped man stood by one of them, monitoring one of the devices. "Hello Byron! This is the young man I mentioned to you. Gold, this our special consultant, Byron." The caped man turned around, revealing construction pants and a tank top. His purple hair stuck out all over the place.

"Gwahahaha, so you're one of the professor's prodigies, are you?" The man grinned at Gold, hefting his shovel (Why did he have a shovel?) to his shoulder.

"Yes, and this one's great!" The man in the white coat replied. "He didn't have a single question during my explanation. Understood everything perfectly!"

"Really?" Byron looked interested. "And you are?"

"The name's Gold."

"That's great. It's nice to see young people getting into fossils. Why I remember my son, Roark…"

How were the others doing? Their jobs had to be more interesting than this one had been, so far. Kris would eat this stuff up though. Oh man, Kris would kill him if she found out he wasn't listening!

"…better be taking my leave. They want me to make an appearance at Camp Caterpie. You know, gym leaders supporting the children and all that. Anyways, good luck with your work, Gold." Byron gave one final nod and left the room. The man in the white coat turned back to Gold.

"I should probably let you get to work, too. Those rock layers aren't going to oxidize themselves!" Then the white-coated man left too, leaving Gold in a room with dozens of expensive machines, and no idea what he was supposed to be doing.

* * *

Yellow looked with relief on the building that she would be working in. It didn't look that bad. It was a townhouse style building in the heart of Viridian City, and was painted a nice lavender color. Several circular tables with chairs sat outside the open door. Upon entering, Yellow found more tables, though most were empty.

"Hey, are you the new employee?" Yellow looked around to see a smiling woman leaning on a counter.

"Y-yes ma'am."

"That's great. The name is Suzanna, and I'm the owner." Suzanna had walked around the counter and now clomped Yellow on the back in greeting. "What's your name kid?"

"Yellow ma'am." Yellow replied. "Is this a restaurant, ma'am?"

"Well, technically, it's a café. You'll be working as one of our servers. Let me show you the back." Yellow followed her new employer to a door leading into what she assumed was a kitchen.

"Where is everyone?" Yellow asked, looking around at the near empty place. Indeed, the only customers were a trio in the back who seemed to be finishing off a buffet, at least according to the number of dirty dishes piling up. Well, the one in the red burette was finishing up. The dark-haired girl and the blond boy were just watching him.

"The lunch rush usually happens around one-ish, so the staff is busy preparing." said Suzanna, leading Yellow through the kitchen to a door in the back.

"Ms. Suzanna!" A girl, maybe two years older than Yellow, hurried from the seating area. "I think we're all out of salmon! Veronica forgot to pick some up when she went shopping. While Suzanna and the girl discussed the intricacies of preparing their dishes without salmon, Yellow stared at the girl's dress. Black and white, with ruffles and lace. She looked like one of those cleaning ladies Yellow had glimpsed in one of Gold's magazines. What were they called? Oh, maids.

"…back to work!" Suzanna called as the girl rushed off to fulfill her employer's demands. Sighing, Suzanna turned back to Yellow.

"Well, here's the changing room. You better get dressed." And with that she grabbed a dress similar to the girls of a nearby hook, and shoved it into a flustered Yellow's arms.

* * *

That's it. Someone was going to die. Silver's eye twitched as he gazed up at the tackiest building on the street. It was bright purple, with bright orange window frames, though none of this particularly bothered Silver. No, what he took issue with, was the sign plastered over the top of the shop in bright red letters. "BINKY BASTIODON'S ARCADE AND PIZZA PARLOR" Next to the off-putting letters was a cartoon caricature of the Pokémon, looking sickeningly happy. The whole display made Silver want to lose his breakfast. Yes, there was going to be blood. Whose it would be was still up for grabs.

Silver turned and was prepared to turn around, head back to the lab, and tell Crystal and the professor where they could stick their $#*&ing address, when his pokegear rang. Looking at the caller ID, he recognized Blue's number. This left him with a new dilemma. Silver loved his sister-figure more than anything in the world, but the fact that she was calling him did not bode well. Love and common sense fought bitterly within Silver's mind as he decided to answer.

"Silver, sweetie," Blue purred. "I just wanted to ask you, you've been in Green's gym, right? Where do you think the best place for a ball pit would be?"

"…The north-east corner?"

"Excellent! What about a trampoline?"

"…Somewhere along the south wall."

"That's perfect!" Blue exclaimed, self-satisfaction seeping from her voice. "By the way, are you working yet? We don't want to let Professor Oak down, do we?" Silver considered his options. Tell the truth, and most likely be forced to go inside the horrifying structure, or lie and avoid it for at least a little while.

"Yes, I'm there." He replied. Not even a lie, technically.

"Yes Silver, you are there, but you are not 'inside'. Get in there, or Gold might accidently find out that you talk about skitties in your sleep." Silver closed his eyes from the realization that she could see him, before once again considering his choices. Total humiliation in front of his arch-nemesis, or total humiliation that hopefully no one but Blue would ever find out about. Plus option one included crossing Blue. He wisely decided on the second course of action.

"Fine." Silver ground out. Blue stated her approval with a delighted squeal before hanging up. Silver turned back to face the building. Slowly, he started for the door. He honestly considered running, but Blue would find out. She always found out.

The inside was almost worse than the outside, if that were possible. Booths lined the walls, and an arcade section was roped off at the back. A man with black hair and glasses and wearing overalls with a green shirt, stood at the front counter and glanced up as Silver entered.

"You look a little old to be coming to a place like this, son." The man stated good-naturedly. The withering look Silver gave him would have made a stampede of Tauros beeline back the way they came. The man suddenly seemed interested in the buttons on his shirt. "Y-you m-must be the…the new employee. I'm Dan… n-nice to…meet you." Silver's glare didn't let up. Dan gulped. "Lyra! Get out here and get this kid a uniform!" Something zoomed from the back rooms and nearly crashed into Silver. Upon second glance, it became apparent that the object was actually a girl with brown hair pulled into pigtails, chocolate brown eyes, (Though why did he notice?) who was also wearing overalls, though hers were cut-off at the thigh, and a red shirt.

The newcomer beamed at Silver, completely oblivious to the 'don't come near me' vibe he was giving off. "Hi! I'm Lyra!" She said holding out her hand. "Who are you?" Silver continued to glare. Lyra continued to smile widely, not letting her hand drop.

"Silver." He finally stated, because quite honestly, her unfaltering smile was starting to creep him out. He made no move to shake her hand though.

"Great! It's so nice to meet you! Well, we better get you dressed!" And before Silver could blink, she had grabbed his jacket and pulled him into the back. Once there, she hurriedly selected a pair of overalls from a hanger and a bright orange T-shirt and held them up to him.

"Yup! These will fit!" Silver looked at the wardrobe choices with disgust.

"I'm not wearing that." Lyra looked crestfallen.

"But why?" She asked as though she couldn't believe anybody wouldn't want to dress up like an idiot.

"Because."

"Please?" She gave him puppy-dog eyes that had absolutely no effect on him. Really.

"No."

Silver exited the room a few minutes later wearing an orange shirt with overalls, and by the look on his face, was ready to eviscerate someone. Dan scooted away with a whimper. "Awesome! I'll show you the register!" Lyra said excitedly as she dragged Silver off, completely oblivious to the dark aura surrounding him. Yes, someone was definitely going to die.

* * *

Green looked down at what appeared to be a fairground and almost had a brain aneurism. Booths and rides were set up in a clearing a little ways onto route 22. Posters advertising Viridian's summer festival were posted everywhere physically possible. Deciding he might as well check with the information booth before flat out leaving, he started into the clearing. People traveled all around, goggling at the attractions. The smell of fat-fried food was pungent in the air. At the desk, a young lady chatted on her cell phone. Her eyes widened when she saw Green, and she quickly ended her conversation.

"Hey, you're Green Oak right?" The girl smiled at him. "We were told you would be coming to help."

"And…who said that?" Green asked quietly.

"Your girlfriend. She called ahead." Girlfriend, huh.

"And what did she sound like?"

"Sound like?" The girl looked confused. "Uh, nice voice I guess. She giggled a lot." Giggled a lot. Damn. "Anyway, I should give you a tour of the fairgrounds." The girl got up and started out of the tent, looking at Green to follow. Green briefly wondered how counter-productive it would be to go in the opposite direction. But if he was reading the situation correctly, he was going to be doing whatever he was here for anyway. Might as well accept it now.

As Green followed the chattering girl, she started to explain some of the new features of the fair. "I know you live around here, so you probably know all of the usual attractions. Well, this year, we've got Sabrina, the gym leader of Saffron doing a fortune telling booth. We were lucky to get her! Let's see, a man named Brawly was in town and agreed to do a test-your-strength booth. We even got a company of Pokémon actors and their manager to come from Unova! And, I just want to say, it is such an honor to have Viridian's gym leader working at the city's fair." The girl abruptly stopped, causing Green to look at the structure in front of them. "This is the ride you'll run, at least for today. Your girlfriend told us you would like it." The building was long and pink, with a long line already waiting to enter. The sign said 'Tunnel of Love'.

Damn.

* * *

Like it? Hate it? What should happen next? Tell me in a review.


	3. Chapter 3

Hey again. As usual, tell me mistakes and I'll fix them. I'll also clean this chapter up later.

* * *

Sapphire wondered how much longer she was going to be hunched over like this. It wasn't that she particularly minded the physical labor, it was just that the kid she was currently supporting smelled like he hadn't bathed in a while, and, knowing Emerald, he might not have.

"Would you stop moving around?" The afore mentioned pipsqueak said as witheringly as he could. "You're going to make me fall in the briars." He gestured to the bushes the duo was currently hiding behind. "And can you stretch a little more? I can barely see anything."

"Well, I'm sorry you're a shrimp, Emerald, I really am, but unless you let me climb a tree, this is as high as you're going to get."

"Your boyfriend hasn't come out of the tent the fatso dragged him into, so I guess…" Sapphire, having stopped listening after the word boyfriend, promptly shoved her shoulders back, sending her young accomplice into the thorny brambles he had hoped to avoid. While Emerald sputtered and swore at her, Sapphire contemplated how she had gotten in this situation.

* * *

"Emerald, what are you doing?" Sapphire stared at her fellow pokedex holder, as he apparently was more interested in raiding Professor Oak's closet than identifying mega stones.

"Do you really care?" Emerald mocked, pulling a long black trench coat from the wilderness of cotton. Sapphire growled. When Crystal had sent her to find Emerald, she expected him to be, I don't know, making prank calls on the professor's phone, or scribbling over diagrams on whiteboards, (unbeknownst to her, he had done both of those earlier) not looking at clothes.

"This is perfect!" Emerald exclaimed, holding up an overcoat twice the size of him.

"I think you're a long way from filling that out." Sapphire replied scathingly. Emerald ignored her, putting his arms through the sleeves.

"Let me on your shoulders." Emerald commanded.

"Like hell."

"C'mon, how else are we going to disguise ourselves?"

"Why the hell would we do that?" Emerald rolled his eyes.

"Gee, talk about being slow on the uptake. Obviously, so we can sneak out of here!" Emerald was now fishing among the boxes for a hat.

"We're supposed to be identifying the mega stones!"

"Right. Let me think. I could go watch Gold and the others humiliate themselves…or I could look at rocks. That's a hard choice, Sapp, it really is." Emerald was now putting on a shirt five sizes too big for him. (Though his magic hands helped considerably.)

"What are you talking about? They're just working. I know I really don't want to go watch Ruby take orders at Happy Burger all day."

"Even that would be better than rocks, but I can happily say, that Blue has made sure today will be entertaining."

"What do you mean?"

"Man, do I have to spell everything out for you?! Usually Gold is the only one this dense! (And Red on some occasions) Blue chose everyone's jobs, which means the results are going to be hilarious! Well, for us at least."

"Quit spouting crap! There's no way Crystal would let that happen." There wasn't one realistic instance that Sapphire could think of in which Crystal allowed Blue to basically destroy everyone's dignity.

"Yeah she did! Blue did it the same way she got you to wear a dress for that one party." Except that.

After making it clear to Emerald that that incident wouldn't be mentioned again, Sapphire considered this new information. "Geez, you're actually telling the truth."

"You think?!" Emerald muttered furiously, rubbing the newfound bruise across the right side of his face. "Anyway, since I can't follow one of the others without being recognized, I was thinking you could come along."

"We have to help professor Oak! Not go around spying on…"

"We could follow Ruby, if you want."

"…Get on my shoulders."

"Hot Dog!" Emerald scrambled up onto Sapphire's back, making sure to dig his toes painfully into every possible place. Sapphire was aware she was ditching work, but this was far more important! Ruby was always calling her uncivilized and barbaric, plus he seemed to have an amnesia problem. Now she had the chance to see him do something humiliating. (She didn't know exactly what it would be, but this was Blue they were talking about.)

With Emerald seated on her shoulders, the coat he was wearing now hung down to Sapphire's shins. "Now for the finishing touches!" Emerald declared. He produced from somewhere a vividly red and curly wig, placing it on his head.

"Where did you get that?!"

"Have you ever heard of a guy called Flint? Never mind! It doesn't matter. Just warn me if you see a bald guy with a lot of tough fire Pokémon, okay?" Sapphire didn't quite know how to respond to this, so she just watched as Emerald placed a bright orange fedora atop his wig.

"And now, mush!" Emerald was promptly dumped off.

* * *

Sapphire could barely tell when they got to the train station, as she could only see out of the hole between the buttons of the overcoat. She had given Emerald her bandanna, which he currently had wrapped around his mouth and nose.

"I see Ruby." Emerald hissed as Sapphire made her way (with great difficulty) through the crowded station. "Geez, who's the fat guy? He could definitely use some exercise. Maybe a protein shake."

"That's Wulfric!" Sapphire hissed right back. "He's one of the strongest gym leaders in the world!" The pair watched as Ruby nearly got his arm taken off by the jovial man.

"They're moving! Keep up! Mush, my doggy, mush!" Sapphire briefly considered tossing Emerald in front of the oncoming trains.

After following for some distance, they saw their quarry stop abruptly, before Wulfric pulled out a grimy purple T-shirt that matched with his and forcibly pulled over Ruby's head. "Hey Sapph, I have a camera up here. I'll get a picture of this for six hundred pokedollers."

"Make it four hundred."

"Deal."

Eventually, Ruby and Wulfric boarded a bus, and Sapphire had to scramble to get on in time. Sitting down, was another matter entirely. Don't ask how they managed it.

Just don't.

Regardless, while they were in their uncomfortable position, Sapphire was pleased to see that Ruby didn't appear to be having the time of his life either, at least according to the way he was scooting away from the drenched Wulfric. Sapphire also noticed the large number of children on the bus, but was too concerned with trying to get Emerald's rear out of her face to ponder it much.

When the bus stopped, it was a welcome event to both pairs of companions. Sapphire climbed out, Emerald once again on her shoulders, and saw the most wondrous thing. They were in a clearing in the forest filled with tents. The branches reached skyward forming a canopy above. Children in purple T-shirts ran around with each other, while adults also in purple T-shirts tried to round them up. On the edges of the forest, you could see the eyes of many Pokémon as they watched the activity.

"This is it?" Emerald asked incredulously. Sapphire didn't answer. This place was amazing! Totally connected with nature! Ruby had really lucked out. "Hey, Earth to Sapphire! I'm sorry to break into whatever pleasant daydream you were having, but your white knight just got dragged by fat wolf into that tent over there. I mean, why dream about Ruby, when you can see him for real?" Emeralds cheek earned him an unexpected lurch in which his face connected with the bus' windows.

* * *

Unfortunately, jut like that 'accident' the profanity now issuing from Emerald's mouth was attracting some attention.

"Excuse me, can we help you two?" Two councilors had noticed the duo, (Their clever disguise falling apart when Emerald was ejected, but not before Sapphire had snatched back her bandanna.) and were currently looking at them with disapproving frowns. "Oh," One of them exclaimed. "Are you here to volunteer?" She eagerly took Sapphire's hand while her companion attempted to remove Emerald from his thorny prison. "My name is Whitney," The pink haired girl said as she led Sapphire away from the swearing midget and his attempting rescuer. "Thanks so much for coming! We are in need of some extra hands. Well, as you probably know, this is camp caterpie, though they change the name every year to a pokemon native to the region. Viridian City sure is great, isn't it?! The kids here really signed up in droves, this is the biggest we've ever gotten! We currently have over three hundred campers, along with twenty gym leaders volunteering and thirty other hires working for the camp. Professor Oak even sent one of his students over to help us out when he heard how large we've gotten! Despite all that, we're still understaffed, and most of our revenue was used up on new equipment and food, so I'm afraid we can't afford to pay you. The professor's assistant took the last of the paying jobs in fact, but we would really appreciate you helping in any way you can. I must say; it's odd to get kids your age volunteering! We only have two other councilors your age! Ah, here we are, the councilor coordination tent! Let's get you signed up!"

Sapphire was slightly disarmed by her escort's energetic personality, finding that she couldn't get a word in-between her monologue. Whitney had led her to the largest tent in the center of the clearing. Pushing the entrance flaps aside, Whitney led Sapphire into the tent and right into the eyesight of a certain white-hatted pokedex holder.

* * *

Emerald watched Sapphire be dragged away. (Though he tried to get her attention) The one remaining councilor, a tall blond man in a blue jacket looked appraisingly at Emerald, as if wondering if he could remove him without ripping the boy to shreds. Eventually, the man sighed, and removed a pokeball from his pocket. "Luxray, come out." A large cat Pokémon Emerald had never seen before in his life appeared. It looked at Emerald with merciless eyes, and suddenly, Emerald wished he could reach his E Shooter. "Luxray, slash."

"Hey now! Wait a minute! Don't…" The brambles around Emerald suddenly ceased to exist. As Emerald collapsed, two hands pulled him out of what remained of the bush. The man stared down at him.

"What are you doing over here? Camper registration is by the buses." The man's frown was reinforced by the giant throat-ripping feline he had at his side.

"I'm not a camper, you moron! Geez, what kind of councilor are you?!" The man's expression didn't change, but the Luxray growled menacingly.

"If you're not are a camper, what are you doing here?"

"Oh, so now people can't go for walks in the woods? What's the matter with you?!"

"You were looking at the camp before you fell."

"I didn't fall, I was pushed! And is it illegal to look at a gathering of hicks when one finds them in the woods?!" The man seemed to be getting annoyed.

"Look kid, I've seen a lot of campers try to sneak away when they arrive. Usually their parents forced them into coming or something, but you are in a class by yourself. Why else would a young boy be wondering just outside the campground?"

"I'm twelve years old you #*$!" The man looked appraisingly at Emerald's diminutive stature. "AGHH! Look! I have Pokémon! You need to be ten to be allowed to train them!"

"So daddy lent you his Pokémon. Campers often come with their parent's, it's actually encouraged. Your foul mouth is not helping your case, though I can see why your parents wanted to get rid of you. Now why don't yo-MY GOD, WHAT IS THAT!?" The man was pointing to the red, curly wig. Emerald quickly snatched it up.

"That's mine, that's what it is!" The man looked at Emerald with disgust.

"So you're the one Flint was talking about." Crap. "Look kid," The man was looking seriously annoyed. "I'm a councilor, so I can't touch you, but if you don't get your butt over to the camper registration desk, I'm going to make things very unpleasant for you."

"Yeah? How are you going to do that?" Emerald sneered.

* * *

Byron was enjoying his walk in the woods immensely. Meeting professor Oak's student had put him in a good mood. He could see the camp up ahead, and was actually looking forward to helping out. He could show the kids how to hunt for fossils. After all, what other outdoor activities were worth knowing? His walk was interrupted, however, when a green blur suddenly ran by, followed closely by a black blur. Upon closer look, it became apparent that the green blur was actually a short boy with a rather odd hairdo, and the black one was a large cat Pokémon. The boy was screaming something that sounded like, "Alright, I'll sign up! Alright, I'll sign up!" Byron stared and wondered what the child had done to piss Volkner off.

* * *

Ace trainer Bonita stared at what had up until recently been the Viridian City gym. Now, instead of the cool transporting tiles that they had had before, the gym now sported an almost obscene amount of the color pink. It had all started that morning when some smiling girl had strode in and declared herself in charge. It turned out, that since Mister Green had volunteered to work at the festival, he had left his "girlfriend" in charge. Bonita wasn't aware that Mister Green had a girlfriend, (Salma was going to be disappointed) but he did recall seeing the smirking brunette with the leader a few times before, so like dumbasses, he and the other gym trainers had accepted her authority.

It wasn't long before she had them ripping out all of the transporting tiles. They had tried to protest, (After all, they had been there since before Mister Green's time.) but Blue had just clucked and said they HAD to go. Unfortunately, it had only got worse from there. Blue had raided the gym's treasury and made sure that if you walked in today, you wouldn't recognize the place. The once proud Viridian gym now sported: pink floor tiles and walls, cardboard cutouts of smiling Pokémon, a jumbo trampoline, which Blue had bounced on for two hours, a ball pit, a tanning solon, and a thrifty rooftop balcony where couples could be served drinks while they watched the sunset, (Salma was the waitress) among other things.

Another rather extreme change was the amount of people inside. Usually, It was just Bonita and the other gym trainers, with Mister Green stopping by whenever his busy schedule allowed it. Now, mostly thanks to Blue's marketing skills, the gym was filled with "customers." The charge to play in the ball pit or on the trampoline was two thousand pokedollars. (They were packed with kids from town.) The sunning booth was seven. (It was also extremely popular.) The rooftop café was just now getting crowded as the sun started to set. While he partially admired the businessman in Blue, (She WAS making a killing after all. She had almost broke even!) it still rankled to see his leader's beloved gym turned into a tourist attraction. Blue had even compiled a waiting list of seventy-three people for Mister Green's autograph and a photo with him when he returned. (At five hundred pokedollars per signature, of course.)

Blue hadn't stopped to enjoy her success, however. She had left about thirty minutes ago, claiming that she needed to check up on some "things". She had left Bonita in charge, which was the source of the man's current frustration as more and more people asked him questions like, "Where's the restroom at?" As even more people came through the doors, (It was spreading through town like wildfire that Viridian gym was now open to everybody.) Bonita really wished for like the thousandth time that day that Mister Green hadn't been generous enough to volunteer at the fair.

* * *

Thank you to the one who gave me the idea for Green's gym. You know who you are. As for the rest of you, I'd appreciate any suggestions you have. Critique is my best friend and so are reviews!


End file.
